Jerry Jones Reveals He Had Stage 4 Cancer, Says Experimental Drug Saved His Life

Jerry Jones revealed this week that he previously battled stage 4 melanoma and credits an experimental drug and his doctors with saving his life.

In an interview with The Dallas Morning News, the Cowboys owner said he began treatment in 2010 after being diagnosed with the advanced form of skin cancer.

"I was saved by a fabulous treatment and great doctors and a real miracle [drug] called PD-1 [therapy]," Jones said. "I went into trials for that PD-1, and it has been one of the great medicines. I now have no tumors."

Jerry Jones was diagnosed with stage 4 melanoma in 2010.

(Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)

PD-1 therapy — or programmed cell death protein 1 — is a form of immunotherapy that helps the body’s T-cells recognize and destroy cancer cells. Once considered almost universally fatal, stage 4 melanoma now has a five-year survival rate of around 50%, with some patients living far longer with the help of treatments like PD-1.

Jones said he underwent treatment at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, including two lung surgeries and two lymph node surgeries over the course of a decade.

The 82-year-old spoke publicly about the diagnosis and treatment just ahead of the release of the Netflix docuseries America’s Team: The Gambler and His Cowboys. The series follows Jones’ purchase of the Cowboys, the firing of legendary coach Tom Landry and the hiring of Jimmy Johnson, along with key moments from Jones’ own life.

Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys are the subject of an upcoming Netflix docuseries.

(Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports)

The cancer revelation came up in a roundabout way. In the fifth episode of the Netflix doc, Jones mentioned that a doctor at MD Anderson once advised him to meditate and make a list of 10 people who "boil your blood," and then wish them well.

"At No. 1, I wrote down the name ‘Jimmy Johnson,’" Jones said.

Weeks later, when the doctor followed up to see how the exercise was going, Jones admitted, "I can’t get past that first mother…"

The two have since made up — it just took a few decades.